What if?
by HR always live on
Summary: A different version of events that could have happened in season three during the school shooting. My first OTH fanfiction so please be kind!
1. Chapter 1

_My version of the events of the school shooting in season 3. This is my first OTH fanfiction!_

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><p>Jimmy held up the gun as Brooke put a hand on Peyton's arm as they both saw the horrifying scene playing out in front of them in the school corridor. Brooke wanted to run. She wanted to scream to tell Peyton to move but she seemed frozen in time. Until the shot went off, deafening her ears. Peyton and Brooke hit the floor as everyone else ran off screaming. In the chaos Peyton ran out of the school building as fast as she could go, pulling Brooke behind her, yanking her arm. "Brooke!" Peyton yelled as her hand got torn from her grasp. But she couldn't turn around, the tide of people running from the school was too great. Before she knew it she was on the pavement outside.<p>

"Brooke!" Peyton yelled again. "Brooke!" She ran towards the school against the rushing crowd when she felt someone pulling her arm.

"Peyton. Peyton! What's going on?" Lucas said turning her to face him.

"Someone has a gun in the school!" Peyton burst out. "A shot went out and I lost Brooke, I think she's still in there, I'm really worried about her."

"She's still in there?" Lucas shouted with urgency, gripping hold of her arms painfully tightly.

"I think so," Peyton said in a tearful voice. Lucas let go of her arms and ran towards the school. "Lucas! Lucas Scott get your ass back here!" But all of Peyton's shouting was in vain. He ran away from her, following Nathan back into the school. Peyton watched in stunned silence as the two Scott boys ran away from her. Going after the women they loved. Peyton watched with tears in her eyes as everyone who mattered in her world was trapped in a building with an unstable boy who had a gun. Who knew what could happen?

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><p><em>Please review and I'll get the next chapter up asap.<em>


	2. Chapter 2

_Thanks everyone for the great reviews. Some of the next few chapters follow the script of the show but I go off on my own tangent soon..._

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><p>Nathan was looking throughout the school for Haley. He knew she'd be here somewhere. "Where d'you think she is?" he asked Lucas impatiently.<p>

"I don't know," Lucas said. "Maybe in the tutor center? Especially if she was there before school started."

"Okay," Nathan said. He moved across to the other side of the corridor. "Lucas?"

"Yeah," he replied slowly. "Good luck." They stood staring at each other for a long moment, all sorts of things said in the silence between them. "If you find Haley, take care of her."

"Of course I will." Nathan held his baseball bat tightly in his hand as he left Lucas alone. Lucas had a look around the school halls warily. He did not want to be caught by surprise. He was by the library when he saw it. Blood on the carpet. It was a lot of blood too. He quietly opened the library doors and had a look around. He couldn't see anyone. He wanted to call out but didn't dare, just in case the gunman was anywhere close. Slowly working his way through the bookcases he was following the drops of blood. He walked around one corner and heard a muffled cry as Brooke came into view, huddled on the floor, her gorgeous dark hair messed up.

"Shh," Lucas said as he bent down to her level. "Sh, it's okay." He had a look at her stomach and felt his heart flip when he saw the blood so thick that it looked almost black. He stroked a hand through her hair lovingly. "Where does it hurt?" Lucas asked.

"Everywhere," Brooke said breathlessly. "I've been shot."

"I can see that," Lucas said quietly, trying to reign in his terror at seeing his girlfriend in this state.

"Peyton, I lost her. I don't know where she went," Brooke said with fear coming through every part of her body. "God, I hope she's okay."

"She's fine," Lucas reassured her. "I saw her running out of the school earlier."

"Good," Brooke said. She closed her eyes for a second and Lucas shook her painfully. "Ow!" she said in a horrible whisper.

"You cannot go to sleep," Lucas said firmly. "Do you hear me? You are not to go to sleep."

"I know, but it hurts," she whispered.

"Yes, but keep those gorgeous brown eyes open for me. Pretty girl."

"I love the way you call me that," Brooke said with a small smile. "Keep talking to me then."

"Okay," Lucas said. And he began talking about something and nothing. Just to keep her mind off of the pain.

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><p><em>Please review! Thanks xxx<em>


	3. Chapter 3

_Th__is chapter follows the episode a bit, but bear with me..._

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><p>Nathan held the bat tightly as he heard someone behind him. He stopped walking and raised the bat, throwing the guy behind him to the wall. It was Mouth.<p>

"What the hell are you doing here?" Nathan asked.

"Where is everyone?" Mouth asked. "What's going on?"

"Someone has a gun, you have to get out of here," Nathan said.

"What about you?" Mouth asked.

"I'm going to get Haley," he said simply. Mouth saw the look of deadly concentration on Nathans face and knew that even bullets wouldn't stop Nathan from trying to get to his wife.

"I'll stay with you," Mouth said firmly. Nathan didn't argue. He was clearly heading towards the tutor center and Mouth stayed as close to Nathan's shadow as possible.

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><p>Haley flicked the light off and the lock down in the tutor center. She was trapped in a room with half a dozen people, some of them she knew, some she didn't. Rachel, Skills and three people she didn't know. A quiet girl, a smartass guy who couldn't keep his mouth shut and a boy she vaguely recognised as Jimmy Edwards, a guy who used to be friends with Luke and Mouth.<p>

She prayed to herself that Nathan hadn't got in to school yet. He was usually late so she hoped that meant he would be safe. God, if anything happened to Nathan she didn't know what she'd do. What about Lucas? Brooke, Peyton?

"We could break the window," the smart mouth guy said.

"It doesn't go anywhere, its enclosed. Its just for light," Haley told them. An argument started to ensue but she wasn't really paying attention. She had her eyes closed, hoping that everyone was safe. She heard something to her left and looked at the door. There was a scuffle and then a knock. Everyone froze.

"Haley it's me," Nathan's familiar voice said through the door. Haley rushed up to unlock it, ignoring everyone else's protests. As soon as the door was open she fell into his arms, barely paying attention to Mouth coming behind him. "We're getting out of here," Nathan said as Haley's head buried into his shoulder.

"I wouldn't do that." Everyone froze as Jimmy Edwards was pointing a gun at them. "Shut the door." Slowly Nathan did what Jimmy told him to, one hand tightly on Haley's arm.

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><p><em>I'll update soon! Please review xxx<em>


	4. Chapter 4

_I am having the weekend from hell but I'll update as soon as I can. The good news is next week I'll have a lot more time to write so some more OTH fanfictions might be appearing! Please read and review..._

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><p>"I remember the first time I saw you," Lucas said as Brooke's eyes flickered shut, a light smile on her face. "You were fearless and so beautiful, your gorgeous hair fanning out behind you, that cheeky glint in your eyes." Lucas pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear before continuing. "From the very first time I looked into your beautiful eyes I knew I was lost."<p>

Brooke's eyes were closing and no matter what Lucas said she couldn't keep them open. "Okay, I'm going to have to get you out of here," Lucas said.

"Are you crazy?" Brooke said, her voice rising into a high squeak. "I've been shot and I don't fancy going out there to let some madman finish the job!"

"We have to get you to a hospital," Lucas said. "I am not going to lose you, okay?"

"I can't move," Brooke said with a small smile. "Come here," she said in a small voice. Lucas moved around her and gently pressed his lips against hers. It was a soft slow kiss that had a lot of meaning behind it. Love, fear and want.

"Can you walk?" Lucas asked. Brooke shook her head, her hair flying everywhere.

"Help me," she whispered. Lucas pulled her upright, her arms draping over his neck. Her head was buried into his shoulder and he could see just how pale she was. Lucas could see the effort it took her just to stand upright so he put an arm under her legs and carried her out of the library. He made sure that the door didn't slam as he passed through the entrance. To get to the school door he had to pass by the tutor center. His thoughts flew back to Haley, his best friend. She was probably still there. He walked closer to the door and listened. He couldn't hear anything there. He pulled Brooke closer up into his arms and kneed the door to make a knock. He heard a shushing noise and waited for someone to say something.

"Who is it?" Nathan's voice said through the door. Lucas suddenly had a feeling that something was horribly wrong. Before he could think anything further he spoke.

"Its Lucas."

"Get out of here Luke," Nathan said quickly. Lucas suddenly felt a cold stab of fear at his spine as there was lots of angry shouting from the tutor center. He walked away from the door as quickly as he could but with Brooke's weight slowing him down it wasn't quick enough.


	5. Chapter 5

Here's a quick update...

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><p>"Oh, you had to be the hero didn't you," Jimmy said, holding the gun incredibly tightly pointing it directly at Nathan's heart. Haley felt fear fill her. She couldn't lose Nathan, she didn't know how she'd manage if Jimmy snapped and decided to pull the trigger. "Why did you have to do that?" Jimmy asked<p>

"Because this is wrong!" Nathan shouted. "You must know that."

"Nathan shut up," Haley said loudly as Jimmy advanced on the two of them. "Please just shut up."

"Stop pointing that at her," Nathan said in a voice which was much calmer than he felt.

"Or what Scott?" Jimmy said in a snide voice.

"You don't want to do this," Haley said. "This isn't the person I know. You know this is wrong." Jimmy closed his eyes, trying to ignore everything that she was saying. He focused on the reason he had decided to come into school with a gun this morning. The unrelenting bullying that had gone on for years. His hatred came to the surface and he couldn't hold it in anymore. And he pulled the trigger. The shot rang out deafening everyone. They were too stunned to duck or react in any other way. Out in the hall Lucas froze as he heard the shot. Even Brooke who had slipped into unconsciousness jerked her head up briefly before slipping back again. In those precious few seconds he considered what he should do. Turn back? Or carry on towards the exit. Those seconds wasted all the time of advantage he could have gained. He heard the door slam and then a voice spoke.

"Turn around," Jimmy said. Lucas slowly spun around with Brooke's body lying in his arms.

"I have to get her some help," Lucas said. "She's in a bad way."

"Where did you come from?" Jimmy asked looking around for other people.

"The library," Lucas said. "I have to get her to the hospital." For the first time Jimmy looked at Brooke, seeing her horribly broken figure in Lucas's arms.

"Oh God!" Jimmy whimpered, completely devastated by what he'd done. "I can't… What have I done?"

"I heard a shot," Lucas ventured to say. "Is everyone okay?"

"No," Jimmy said with a whimper. "I didn't mean to… I… I'm sorry." Jimmy took one last look at Brooke, lying still in Lucas's arms and collapsed onto the floor, still holding the gun. He shook his head briefly and then he shot himself. Lucas closed his eyes as Jimmy's body lay on the floor. He quickly turned and took Brooke to the school grounds. He could do nothing for those inside the tutor center. Just hope that everyone was okay.

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><p><em>More soon! Please review! xxx<em>


	6. Chapter 6

_Here's a quick update... (I'm sorry...)_

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><p>"Come on Haley, keep your eyes open for me," Nathan said desperately. He held her shaking body close as blood flecks were at the corner of her mouth.<p>

"I can't," she moaned quietly. "Ow…" Nathan hated how everyone was just standing there and looking at Haley, speechless.

"Somebody do something!" he yelled. Mouth had tears in his eyes but no one moved.

"Nathan…" Haley sputtered. "I love you."

"Don't you dare," he said fiercely. "You are not dying, do you hear me?" But her eyes had closed. Nathan put a hand on her neck, feeling for her pulse. It was there and it was steady. "Mouth, stay with her. I'm going to see whether the coast is clear." Nathan got up from Haley's immobile form and opened the door. He saw straight away what he was looking for. The knowledge that no one else would be shot today.

Jimmy Edwards was lying on the floor in a pool of blood. From his position it was clear that he had shot himself. Only waiting the two seconds it took to confirm that he was dead, he ran back to Haley and picked her up. She moaned slightly as her body moved against her will and Nathan thought he had never heard a sweeter noise. It meant she was still alive. He walked out of the school, not knowing that his footsteps were treading along those Lucas had walked, minutes before.

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><p>Lucas was allowed to ride in the ambulance with Brooke, once he had explained that her parents didn't live there. She was hooked up to all kinds of horrible machines and they were speaking horrible things like kidney damage, liver failure and emergency surgery. He held her hand tightly. She hadn't come out of her slumbering state for many minutes now and it terrified him.<p>

"Come on, wake up. Please, for me, just open your eyes." His words had no effect. He was unaware that Nathan was saying exactly the same thing to his wife in the ambulance behind him.

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><p>Brooke's life was dripping away from her second by second and no one was doing anything. They were desperately trying to contact her parents to get permission for her surgery. She was a minor so without her parents permission, she would die, simply by waiting. This was driving Lucas insane and he was pacing up and down when Peyton came into view.<p>

"How is she?"

"Bad," Lucas said. He couldn't bring himself to voice anymore. He didn't want to make self fulfilling prophecies.

"She's tough," Peyton said trying to hide her fear. "She'll get through this. What about everyone else?"

"I hear there's an ambulance with one other casualty coming but I don't know who," Lucas said. As he spoke the double doors at the other end of the corridor flew open and a stretcher flew by. When Lucas saw Nathan running alongside the trolley Lucas slipped to the floor. "Haley…" he whispered seeing her hair fanning out on the pillow, her tiny body on the stretcher as Nathan saw him. The doctors stopped wheeling her for a second and Nathan kissed her hand.

"Hold on for me," he whispered. The doctors nodded at him and took her into surgery straight away. Nathan collapsed onto the floor next to Lucas.

"Is she…" Luke asked.

"I don't know," Nathan said. "Is Brooke…?"

"I don't know either," Luke said. Peyton felt like a spare part. She stormed out of the hospital and picked up her mobile phone. She was going to get through to Victoria if it was the last thing she ever did.

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><p><em>The more reviews I get the quicker I'll post the next chapter...<em>


	7. Chapter 7

_This is the last part I have written so it might be a while before I update. I'll try to get it done asap._

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><p>Nathan was pacing up and down the corridor with one thing on his mind. Haley. He had no idea how long he'd been there when Peyton rushed up to Lucas who still looked devastated. "Brooke's going in to surgery," Peyton said in a rush.<p>

"What?" Lucas said in surprise.

"I managed to track Victoria down and she faxed through her signature so Brooke's going in to surgery now," Peyton said. "Unfortunately Brooke's mother is also catching a flight back here which means we'll have to deal with hurricane Victoria in half a day's time." Luke gave her a weak smile, realising that she was trying to lighten the mood. "Luke, you need to eat something," Peyton said. "This isn't healthy and worrying about her isn't going to help her get any better."

"Peyton…"

"I'm just as scared as you are about losing her," Peyton said firmly. "You know that. She's my best friend. Waiting here scared stiff isn't going to help." Lucas closed his eyes and nodded. He followed Peyton to the hospital cafeteria, leaving Nathan worrying about his wife.

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><p>Hours later Nathan saw a doctor approaching him. "How is she?" Nathan asked immediately.<p>

"We've managed to stop the internal bleeding," the doctor said. "She's in recovery right now and she should be okay but I'm afraid I have some bad news for you too."

"What?" Nathan said holding his breath.

"It was probably too early for her to even be aware of it, but she was pregnant," the doctor said. "We weren't able to save the baby. She's had a miscarriage". Nathan closed his eyes for a second or two to absorb that horrible information.

"Okay," Nathan said slowly. "But… she… she'll be okay, won't she?" Nathan asked.

"If she wakes up, she'll be fine.

"Is she likely to wake up?" Nathan asked, getting to the question that was terrifying him.

"Probably," the doctor said with a quick glance to the window on the right. "Follow me if you want to see her." Nathan did what the doctor told him to and ended up sitting by Haley's bed. She looked as pale and cold. He put a hand to her cheek gently, feeling the faint heat emanating from her skin. It was reassuring that simple touch. He pulled up a chair and held her hand tightly. He was determined not to let go of it.

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><p><em>Please leave a review! Big thanks to everyone who already has taken the time to review. xxx<em>


	8. Chapter 8

_I got inspired last night so here's an update more quickly than I expected. Enjoy and review xxx._

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><p>"Wake up," Nathan said quietly to Haley's unconscious face, his thumb stroking the back of her hand. "All that stupid wasted time between us. I shouldn't have been so mad at you. I should have let you back into my life again. You have no idea how much I'll hate myself if I never get to take any of it back." There was a knock on the door and Peyton appeared.<p>

"Is it okay if I come in?" she asked quietly. Nathan nodded and then returned his gaze to his wife. "How is she?"

"I don't really know," Nathan said in a sigh. "Just waiting for her to wake up. How's Brooke?"

"Still in surgery," Peyton said. "They say its taking longer than expected. More damage than they thought." Peyton sniffed lightly and Nathan could see how hard she was trying to hold herself together.

"How's Luke?"

"Devastated," Peyton said. "He's going to burn a hole in the floor from the amount he's pacing." Nathan smiled without any humour.

"You should go and wait for Brooke," Nathan said. "I really appreciate you seeing how Haley is but it could be hours or even days until she wakes up."

"She will wake up Nathan," Peyton said. She put a hand on his shoulder and left him to his bedside vigil.

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><p>Peyton walked into the corridor and found Lucas missing. Starting to panic she ran through the hospital looking for him, scanning the rooms. She didn't find him. Eventually she gave up and thought that going to the reception desk was probably a smarter move.<p>

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><p>"How is she?" Lucas demanded of the orderly who was wheeling Brooke to her hospital room.<p>

"I have no idea, I'm just the transport guy. You'll have to ask the doctor or the surgeon."

"That's completely incompetent!" Lucas shouted. The orderly raised his eyebrows and Luke apologised. "I'm sorry. Its just this is a really stressful time for me. I won't lose her. I can't."

"That's okay," he said with a smile. "If I had a penny for every time someone shouted at me…" Lucas followed Brooke into her waiting hospital room and was sitting quietly next to her until the doctor came in.

"She's going to be okay," the doctor said immediately. Luke closed his eyes in relief. "We've had to remove one of her kidneys but it shouldn't affect her quality of life. There was too much damage to save it."

"And when will she wake up?" Lucas asked, his eyes searching the doctors face.

"…Now…" Brooke's hoarse voice said. Luke spun around and looked into Brooke's beautiful open eyes, flickering slightly.

"Thank God," Lucas said with relief. He urgently kissed her lips, reassuring himself that she was in fact still here.

"Let me breathe…" she whispered in a broken voice.

"How do you feel?" Luke asked, a hand going through her hair wonderfully.

"Like I've been thrown into oncoming traffic," she whispered, her attempt at a joke failing miserably. "How is everyone else?"

"Only one other injury," Lucas said quietly. "It was Haley. She still hasn't woken up yet."

"Oh," Brooke said, her hand finding his blindly.

"I have some more news for you. Your mothers flying back here."

"What!" Brooke said in a high pitched squeal. She sat up in bed and winced as it hurt her. "Why? Why is my _mother_ coming here?"

"Because her daughter was shot," Lucas said, kissing the top of her head. "It was hard tracking her down to get her to sign the consent forms for your surgery. It was touch and go for a while. It looked like…" Lucas couldn't bring himself to finish that sentence.

"I'm not going anywhere," Brooke said with a tiny smile. "Is Peyton okay?"

"She's worried about you," Luke said. "I should go and find her actually."

"No, don't," Brooke said her hand touching his face lovingly. They both turned as the door flew open and Peyton stood there, her mouth hanging open. "She'll find me," Brooke said.

"I'm going to go and see Haley," Lucas said. "As long as you're okay," he said with a hint of a question in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I love you."

"I love you too pretty girl," he said, kissing the top of her head once more. He took one last look at her and left her in Peyton's capable hands. Before going to find his best friend he braced himself against the wall. That had been far too close a call. He brushed the tears away impatiently. He still had someone else to focus on. Haley.


	9. Chapter 9

Nathan was still holding her hand as he felt something. He wasn't sure whether he was imagining it or not but he thought he felt Haley's hand twitch. "Wake up," he demanded in a firm voice. "Listen to me and wake up."

"Ow," Haley whispered as her eyes opened a tiny crack. "Everything hurts. What happened to me?"

"You got shot," Nathan said as a relieved sigh overcame him. "Do you remember?"

"Yeah, I meant what shape am I in? How bad is the damage?"

"You'll be okay," Nathan said, his fingers caressing her hand gently.

"There's something you're not telling me," Haley said. "I know you. What is it?"

"Did you know… did you know you were pregnant?" Nathan said slowly.

"What?" Haley said, her eyes open in shock. She sat up straight and Nathan saw a hundred emotions on her face in a few seconds. Amazement, fear, hope wonder alarm… every possible feeling, she felt it. "Is it…?"

"No," Nathan said sadly. "You had a miscarriage. I… I'm sorry." Haley closed her eyes and felt the tears burn hotly down her face no matter how hard she tried to stop them. "It should have been me," Nathan said. "I wish he'd shot me instead."

"No, I wouldn't wish that," Haley said. "I just… I'm sad."

"I know," Nathan said. He leant close to her and gently brushed his lips with his own. It was such a soft and meaningful kiss that Haley almost felt her heart break with the tenderness.

"How is everyone else?" Haley asked.

"Brooke was shot but it looks like she's going to be okay," Nathan said. "And Jimmy killed himself." Haley thought about it for a moment but couldn't bring herself to regret that Jimmy was no longer around. The person who was responsible for her babies death. She wondered if that made her a bad person but at the moment, she was too tired and exhausted to care. She closed her eyes in a mixture of sadness and pure exhaustion.

"I love you," she murmured before letting go of consciousness. He kept hold of her hand until she was asleep and stayed there until Lucas came into the room.

"How is she?" Lucas asked sitting next to Haley on her other side.

"Okay," Nathan said. "She woke up for a little bit before slipping back into sleep. She's going to be okay. How's Brooke?"

"Fine," Lucas said. "She'll be discharged in a few days time."

"That's good," Nathan said. He kept hold of his wife's hand and both of them were in silence for an unknown amount of time.

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><p><em>One more chapter to go. Please review.<em>


	10. Chapter 10

_Three weeks later._

Haley stood alone on the river court, deep in thought. She needed time to be alone and think. She hadn't known she was pregnant but she still felt the loss of possibilities and the future. It hurt her. To think that her first child had died before it was even born was horrible. She was watching the river flow by in the peace and quiet. She could feel the wind blowing against the tears that had fallen down her face. She hadn't even realised she was crying. She brushed them away impatiently and turned to walk away. Her eyes met Lucas's.

"What are you doing here?" Lucas asked as he dropped the basketball on the court.

"Thinking," she said with a sad smile on her face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Lucas said pulling her in for a hug.

"I'm just upset," she said into his chest.

"No one was hurt," Lucas said. Haley didn't reply but looked at the ground. "You know you could tell me what's wrong," he said.

"Yeah, I know," Haley said. "Before I was shot… I was pregnant." Haley couldn't bring herself to look at Luke's face. "I lost the baby."

"Oh Hales," he said in a sad voice. "I'm so sorry."

"No," she said as he pulled her in for a hug. "You do that and I'm going to fall apart. So please don't."

"Okay," Lucas said. "Does Nathan…?"

"Yes, he knows. He's the one the doctors told when they weren't sure I was going to wake up." Haley sighed and closed her eyes. "It just hurts."

"I know," he said. "I can't imagine what its like for you." There was a pause and Luke bent down to pick up the basketball. "Wanna practice? I'll even let you win." Haley laughed

"I'm rubbish on a day I am not recovering from surgery," she said. "Do you really think I'll beat you?"

"You might if I join in," Brooke said to the back of their heads. "Anyway, he'll have to let his two best girls win." Haley looked at her. Brooke's face was pale but she was feeling well enough to apply eyeliner so she couldn't be feeling that down or ill.

"Where's your mother?" Lucas asked.

"On a flight to California," Brooke said happily. "I won't have to see her for months and I've got to tell you that is simply a relief." Lucas smiled and threw her the basketball. Brooke caught it and aimed at the hoop. It bounced off into Haley's hands. She looked at Lucas once before throwing it. It swirled around the rim and slowly dropped in. She let a genuine smile flower on her face.

"You're right, that did make me feel better," she said. They continued over the rest of the afternoon, enjoying ignoring the more serious events that had coloured their lives over the past few weeks.

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><p>The End. A last review would make my day. Thanks everyone for reading my first OTH fanfiction!<p> 


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